Shares in the 13 biggest publicly traded U.S. builders remain well off their peak prices from 2005, during the housing boom. Still, their stocks, on average, more than doubled in 2012.

That supports demand for real estate-related IPOs, Gaskins said.

And more is likely coming. Another homebuilder, Taylor Morrison Home Corp., filed documents for an initial public offering in December. The Scottsdale, Ariz., company hopes to raise up to $250 million.

Boise Cascade isn't a homebuilder itself. Originally formed in 1913, Boise Cascade makes plywood and other wood products and building materials, supplying about 4,500 wholesalers, home improvement centers, retail lumberyards and other customers. It bought office supply chain OfficeMax in 2003. That company then sold its paper and wood products division to Madison Dearborn Partners LLC. The private equity firm took Boise Cascade to market and still owns about 70 percent of the Boise, Idaho, company after the IPO. Office supply chain OfficeMax Inc. also kept a 20 percent stake.

Boise Cascade raised $247.1 million in its IPO, which was more than it expected, from selling 11.8 million shares for $21 each. It had initially set a price range of $16 to $18, and raised that to $18 to $20 on Tuesday in a signal of healthy demand. Boise Cascade plans to use $25 million to repay debt and the rest for general corporate purposes.

Trading under the "BCC" ticker symbol on the New York Stock Exchange, Boise Cascade's stock gained $5.15 to close at $26.15.

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AP Business Writers Steve Rothwell and Michelle Chapman contributed to this story from New York.